Rice ready for challenge posed by No. 5 Baylor

Updated 9:41 pm, Friday, September 25, 2015

The state's two winningest Football Bowl Subdivision programs since 2013 face off Saturday, but one of them is not given much of a chance to prevail.

Fifth-ranked Baylor is a 34½-point favorite over Rice heading into Saturday's 2 p.m. game at McLane Stadium in Waco.

Since 2013, the Bears are 24-4 and the Owls are 20-10.

For the record, TCU is third on the list at 19-9.

Baylor (2-0) once again owns the nation's best offense, averaging 754 yards and 61 points per game and presents a formidable challenge for Rice (2-1), which lost to Texas before winning its Conference USA opener against North Texas (38-24) last week.

"We have to believe that we can do it, and we have to play like we can do it."

Rice has not shied away from playing top-tier teams the last several seasons. Last season, they lost to Notre Dame and Texas A&M in non-conference play. This season, the Longhorns and the Bears were on the schedule.

More Information

About the game When/where: 2 p.m. today; McLane Stadium, Waco.

Records: Rice 2-1, Baylor 2-0.

TV/radio: FSSW; 1560 AM, 1070 AM.

Notable: The game marks the 80th meeting between the former Southwest Conference foes. The Bears are 21-10 at home against the Owls and have won the last four in a row at Waco.

The Owls put a scare into UT at Austin two weeks ago before losing 42-28.

To beat the two-time Big 12 champion, the Rice defense will need to create takeaways and avoid giving up big plays to Baylor's potent offense.

Cornerback V.J. Banks said the Owls are excited about the opportunity to measure themselves on the road against one of the top teams in the country.

"Of course, that's the goal, that's what you want to do against the No. 5 team in the nation," Banks said. "You have a little more energy, a little more juice to go in and try to prove yourself. It's games like these where smaller programs can really justify themselves."

Winning at Waco is harder to do than it used to be. The Bears are 30-3 at home in the last four seasons and have not lost at Waco since 2012.

Baylor's 17-game home winning streak is the longest among FBS teams after Alabama's loss to Mississippi last weekend.

Rice has not beaten a ranked team since BYU in 1997 and is trying to avoid a 25th consecutive loss to Top 25 teams.

The Bears are heavy favorites, but coach Art Briles will not allow his team to take the Owls lightly.

"They're good, they're just a really good football team," Briles said. "When you look at it from a realistic standpoint, based on how they've done the last four or five years, they've got good schemes. They've just got a lot of confidence. Their kids are sharp, they know what they're doing, they're not out of position. They're just a really good football team, and there's a reason their coach has been there nine years."